Classic (Type I) Hypothyroidism is an inherited disorder that is known to affect about seven percent of the American population. Caused by the thyroid's failure to secrete adequate hormone levels, it is typically diagnosed early in life through blood tests. However, there is a far more prevalent form of the disease (some say up to 50-80% of the population) that cannot be detected with blood tests and is therefore ignored by modern medicine. Is your healthy future being stolen by your genes, your environment and by the ignorance and arrogance of current medical dogma?
In order to better understand this growing epidemic that lurks undetected beneath many of our nation's most pressing health challenges, we must first look at a similar epidemic disease of glandular/hormonal failure that has long been acknowledged and targeted by the medical establishment.
Lessons From Diabetes
Diabetes Type 1 is an inherited disorder in which the pancreas is unable to produce adequate insulin to manage blood sugar levels. Patients are managed with insulin injections from computerized pumps.
Likewise, Classic Hypothyroidism requires permanent hormone replacement therapy to offset a particular glandular deficit. Patients are typically placed on Synthroid, a synthetic version of levothyroxine (T4) - one of a number of thyroid hormones.
Diabetes Type 2 has a delayed onset because although it too may have predisposing genetic factors, the likelihood of it affecting our adult lives has a lot to do with our dietary and lifestyle choices. This is because the root problem is not inadequate insulin production from the pancreas, but rather a conditioned response in target tissues known as insulin resistance.
A steady diet of refined carbs prompts the pancreas to flood the body with insulin repeatedly until eventually the cellular response to insulin is impaired... kind of like "The Boy Who Cried Wolf". The message is there but the cells are no longer listening.
Hypothyroidism Type II - Peripheral Resistance to Thyroid Hormone
Hypothyroidism Type II is a similar problem... peripheral resistance to thyroid hormones at the cellular level... only here the issue appears to be a breakdown in cellular metabolism of thyroid hormone (inability to convert T4 to T3 or other metabolites).
Doctors are being confronted with increasing numbers of patients who present with "normal" thyroid blood panels and yet may have profound symptoms of thyroid suppression. Regardless of blood levels, when thyroid hormones are lacking in the cell, cellular energy levels plummet, affecting virtually all aspects of metabolism. According to Lawrence Sonkin MD, a pioneer of endocrine research, cellular energy declines impact the central nervous system, heart and skeletal muscle, kidneys and hormone producing tissues - in that order.
Primary Symptoms of Hypothyroidism Type II
The thyroid is the master gland of the endocrine system. It determines the basal metabolic rate for the body, so one of the most noticeable signs of thyroid malfunction is low body temperature (below 97.6 degrees) and a resulting intolerance to cold. Puffiness along the jaw line and around the eyes are another telltale sign.
Hair loss, brittle nails, dry skin, migraines, immune suppression, asthma and allergies, heart arrhythmias, anxiety, depression, stubborn weight gain, menstrual problems and infertility are all common symptoms of thyroid insufficiency. Left untreated, this type of thyroid suppression can lead to:
- Heart disease
- Osteoporosis
- High blood pressure and cholesterol
- Diabetes
- Chronic Fatigue
- Rheumatoid pain and joint deformations
Factors That Complicate Diagnosis and Treatment
1. Heavy Metal Toxicity - The thyroid is highly susceptible to the damaging effects of environmental toxins. Detoxification protocols to reduce the toxic burden on the body are critical to successful recovery.
2. Chemical Toxicity and Fungal Overload - Many chemicals and fungal mycotoxins have an estrogenic effect on the body, further suppressing thyroid function.
3. Nutritional Deficiencies - Mineral deficits are common, particularly magnesium, zinc, selenium and of course, iodine. These and any others present must be addressed.
4. Adrenal Exhaustion - Suppressed adrenal function has an adverse effect on both diagnosis and treatment due to the closely interrelated functions of the glands.
Only the finest of physicians are capable of diagnosing or effectively treating Hypothyroidism Type II today, because it requires a thorough family history and physical exam, a sound understanding of human physiology, a willingness to treat the patient as a whole, the wisdom to see and the courage to admit that the disease exists in the first place.
Sadly, most patients who suffer from this disease have symptoms that are being ignored because the blood tests do not match the diagnosis. Instead of getting the help they so desperately need, they are offered anti-depressants, beta blockers, statins, synthetic hormones and anti-resorption (bone loss) drugs. And it seems that our government wants to keep it that way...
Natural Treatment Options Under Fire
Years ago, before the advent of synthetic (but patented) hormones and thyroid blood panels, physicians used iodine and natural glandular therapy to treat symptoms of thyroid insufficiency with tremendous success. Full spectrum dessicated glandulars like Armour Thyroid are much more effective at restoring glandular function than isolated synthetic hormones because they contain a cross section of all the thyroid hormones, peptides and other metabolites.
Synthetic isolates cannot deliver the greatest advantage of glandular therapy: not only does it offer gland specific nutrition, but it conveys information encoded in the RNA and DNA of the glandular tissues that simply cannot be transmitted any other way. Besides, if a person lacks the ability to metabolize T4 to T3, what good does it do to give them more T4?
Unfortunately, the FDA has recently ordered Armour and several other manufacturers of dessicated thyroid to stop production, and soon it may no longer be available at all. First they limited its access to prescription only (even though it is a natural glandular preparation), and now it appears they want to ban it altogether. What a travesty that will be if it is allowed to happen!
Just another way that your health freedom is being threatened, and chances are slim that you will hear anything about this on the news.
